Interview Lessons from a Video Contest

Remember the competition for the best job in the world? Well, here's a knock off -- it's a really Goode job (a pun because the company's name is Murphy-Goode, a winemaker in California.) They're offering $10k per month for six months for someone to come out and drink wine (oh yeah, there are a few other responsibilities.) But that's the key part of the job. ;-)

As I watched a few of the application videos, it was pretty clear what was working and what wasn't working in these 60-second interviews. In particular, the two videos highlighted below illustrate perfectly many of the do's and don'ts associated with having a successful interview.

For instance, this video isn't working (FYI, the video is going in and out on my site, so if you can't see it here, grab a look here):

Why isn't it working? Let me name the ways:

• Poor quality. Is this really the person you wanting to represent your company on the web? The video and sound quality is terrible. Poor first impression.

• "Recently unemployed." Following up the poor first impression is an even worse second impression. Talk about leading with a negative. "I'm recently unemployed" screams "you're not worth me firing." Why even bring it up?

• I, me, my. Too much about her and what she wants. Should be about the potential employer, what they want, and how she can help.

• "I love the Internet." Is this a qualification? Really? Ugh.

• No quantifiable accomplishments. How about telling us how many visitors your blog gets? Or maybe how you did something great online (that's what the job is about after all.) This video is lacking any sort of accomplishment that's verifiable and impressive.

One positive note: at least she's cute. It's something I would expect a wine company to want -- a good-looking representative.

Overall, this video demonstrated several of the ways you can kill an interview.

Now, here's one I thought was a winner (here's the link if the video does not display):

Why did I like this one? For the following reasons:

• Good quality. Nice video, scenery, music, background, etc. Starts me off with a good impression.

• Quantifiable accomplishments. This guy can deliver! He's connected! I would have preferred that he lead with the stats (and put his personal info behind it) as well as translate the numbers into "and this is how I can use these various outlets to help you," but overall I got the impression that he has made big things happen in the past and can do so for any employer.

• Nice guy. He looks friendly -- like someone I'd like to work with.

• Good presentation. He looks comfortable and presents himself well. I know this can be edited to look this way, but at least he made it look that way. The first woman simply looked uncomfortable and like she needed a haircut (she keeps flipping her hair back.)

He didn't nail it 100%, but this interview was pretty good IMO.

So what are the takeaways here? How can we apply the learnings in these two videos to make our real-life interviews better? Here's what I'd say:

1. Make sure you highlight quantifiable accomplishments. Practice interview responses in advance and be sure they are full of success stories.

2. Have a good attitude -- be pleasant. If you can deliver results and are someone people like, you're going to win way more than you lose.

3. It's about the employer and what you can do for them. It's not about you and what you want to do with your life. (At least in how you represent yourself in the interview. Obviously, you have to consider your wants and needs. But presumably you've done this prior to even interviewing for a job.)

4. The little things matter. The little things say a lot about you -- the type of person you are, whether or not you'd fit in, and so on. And remember, you're always "on" -- from the time you hit the parking lot to the time you leave it, ANYTHING you say or do can influence the hiring decision. So be warned, and act accordingly.

Comments

[Darin H]

That poor girl, she's gotten by on her looks for so long that she doesn't have anything else to offer.

[rq]

I laughed out loud when the girl said, "I'm young, hip, energetic, and adventurous; and I'm looking for a job that can keep up with my exciting lifestyle. If you think that you might be the opportunity that I'm looking for, you should let me know."

If I ever interview with a company that I know I don't want to work for, I'm definitely using that line.

[My Life ROI]

Yeah, I lol'd. She didn't seem to get how interviews work. Obviously this sort of thing lends itself to a lot of creativity, which she didn't use either.

[Eugene Krabs]

Methinks the girl got this and myspace confused somehow....

Anyways, just wanted to say that the second one is really impressive! Not just the qualifications, but the technical quality of the video presentation as well.

[Matt]

Can she flick her hair anymore than she already does?

[rwh]

The first one has to be a put on, right?

[Mike Hunt]

The first one is going to get a job working at one of those 1-900-XXX-XXXX numbers, methinks. I was just waiting for the punchline... "I love Sex" or something equally ridiculous.

Not to be too harsh but she really needs to do better.

The 2nd video was really slick. Obviously a very good production effort and some great accomplishments. Hope he gets an interview.

-Mike

[william metco]

yes I really liked the randy elrod. Very nice presentation.